What I'm Reading
- Posted by John David Anderson (realistic fiction) In a middle school where all cell phones are banned from campus, how will the student body stay 'connected' without the endless stream of consciousness they are allowed to tweet out to the cosmos, regardless of how their words will affect the recipients and anyone else who happens to read what's been posted. In the age of super technology, along comes this gem of a book to make you stop and really think about where true connections with others comes from.
- Three Times Lucky by Sheila Turnage (mystery) Moses 'Mo' LoBeau was found as an infant on a scrap of debris after a hurricane 11 years ago. Now, a horrific crime has plagued her small town and it is up to her and the superbly eclectic collection of townspeople to solve this mystery before there's another victim. The question is, who can you trust?
- George by Alex Gino (realistic fiction) Meet George; she was born in a boy's body and has always struggled to be herself in her own skin. When her 4th grade class finishes reading the beloved, Charlotte's Web, and George finds out his class will be performing it for the school, he wants desperately to perform the role of Charlotte. But boys don't play the parts of girls. How can George embrace his 'role' as a female in the play? against the school bullies? and in her own home with her mom and brother?
- The Breadwinner by Deborah Ellis (historical fiction set in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan) Due to horrific circumstances, Parvana is forced to pose as a boy to keep her family alive when her father is taken by the Taliban. This story is a real tribute to perseverance and hope. Deborah Ellis has honored the countless women of Afghanistan whose lives have been ever-changed by the restrictions of their freedoms and their hope that cannot be dampered.
- Audacity by Melanie Crowder (historical fiction told in free verse) Clara is a Russian Jewish immigrant in New York who has a thirst for knowledge that is parched because she is forced to be a child laborer in clothing factories that make her, and girls like her, work 10 locked in hour days, 7 days a week, 2 bathroom breaks a day. Can she rise up and get better working conditions for herself and all the children? Will her thirst to go to school be quenched? Favorite Quote: "A person can rise up if she can read, if she can think, if she can speak."
Ms. Garner's Go-Tos!
(aka The Ever-Growing List!)
- The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate
- The Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling
- A Long Way from Chicago, A Year Down Yonder, A Season of Gifts by Richard Peck
- Love that Dog by Sharon Creech